-Roxy-

  By the end of the second day, I realized why Philip had brushed me off. It seemed I was the one who judged him too quickly. While my previous student was lazy, Eris was simply untamed. Every time I tried to start a lesson, she would scream that she wanted another story. On the first day, I simply played along, thinking she would cooperate after her curiosity was sated. Instead, she simply kept me reminiscing the entire day, yelling for more stories if I tried to get back on track.

  The following day, I put my foot down. I told her there would be no more tales of adventure for her. That's was the first time she attacked me. Punching, kicking, even biting me when given the chance. Despite having faced monster of all kinds, Eris was a menace unlike any I had ever faced. Being unable to fight back didn't help. By the time I forced her off of me, she had grown tired of her tantrum and simply left. I chased her down, only to be met with more violence. Things went like this for the rest of the week.

  On the second week, I stopped chasing Eris. She'd show up and fight, then leave. I would tend to my wounds, then focus on my own studies. I had gone and bought a book on healing magic, as it was clear I'd need to brush up on the craft, given my student's volatile nature. With the end of the second week fast approaching, I was growing worried. I couldn't even pretend to be teaching her if she was never in the classroom.

  The third week was where things started to escalate. Eris had grown tired of waiting for me to give in. She started fighting, leaving, then returning to fight again. Multiple times a day, she'd come back to scream, scratch, punch and kick, all in an attempt to get me to tell her about my adventures. In truth, I think she was also bored of having nothing else to do. I was turning into her playmate more than her teacher. As the third week rolled into the last, I formulated a plot to tame this wild heiress.

  The final week, down to the wire, and I had my plan all set up. Eris came into the classroom, arms crossed in her signature commanding stance. She gave her usual demand.

  “Tell me a story!”

  “Alright.”

  “I said... What?”

  “I'll tell you a story. You just have to do one thing.”

  “No! Tell me a story!” She began to approach shoulders raised and ready to fight.

  “You can fight me all you want. It won't change my mind.” That seemed to stop her. Even someone as stubborn as her had learned over the last few weeks that fighting wasn't getting her what she wanted. “It's going to be easy. You just have to spell your name.”

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  “I don't know how to do that!” She declared with no shame. It was like she didn't even understand the concept of learning.

  “I'll show you how. Once you can do it, I'll tell you a story.”

  Then, she attacked...

  “Tell me a story!”

  “You still haven't spelled your name.”

  And she attacked...

  “This is hard!”

  “It will get easier with time.”

  And again, she attacked...

  “There! Now, tell me a story.”

  I looked at the paper. It was crude, barely legible, and a few letters were backwards. Still, it said Eris. “Very well, I'll start a story.”

  “Good!”

  “Then, we were surrounded by slimes.” Eris looked excited, finally able to live vicariously through my tales. Now, it was time for phase two. “And I'll tell you the rest later.”

  “No! I spelled my name! Finish the story!”

  I braced myself. I knew it was going to be a long battle, but this was the only way. “You need to keep coming to lessons. If you finish a lesson, I'll conti-”

  And the fight began anew...

  The rest of the week followed a similar pattern, with slow progress. On the second day, she learned a few letters. On the third day, she was starting to learn addition. The fourth day was a non-starter, with no real progress made. However, she had moved on from fighting to simply leaving the classroom. On the fifth day, she was able to remember a few historical figure's names. So far, it was her best subject. The sixth day, she had spelled her full name: Eris Boreas Greyrat. Despite the continued impatience, she left the class fewer times each day.

  The last day came. It was a long month. While the beatings had stopped, Eris had still stormed out three times the previous day. Now, it seemed hopeless that I'd keep the job, but I had tried my best. I understood now that some students require patience and care. I would be able to use this on my next teaching job, if I could find one.

  Eris entered the classroom as usual. She hadn't opened with a request for stories in a few days. She understood the order of things. “Start the class!”

  “Very well. Today, we'll be continuing to learn addition.”

  The first hour was calm, but the second was tense. Eris was growing impatient. Getting into the double digits was more difficult than I expected. I could tell she was about to storm out. I could simply tell her a story through the rest of the day, technically winning the bet and keeping my job, but that would simply result in losing what little progress I had made. I kept up the lesson until, inevitably, Eris rose from her seat.

  “Teach me spelling instead!”

  “Hmm?” I was expecting her to storm out. Instead, she requested we change lessons. “Are you sure? I'm fine with that, but it will take longer to get to your story.”

  “I don't care! I don't like addition!”

  “Of course. To start, let's spell Roa.”

  The day ended with a long story time. In truth, she hadn't earned a story that day. Every lesson ended early, as we switched subjects as her patience ran dry. However, she never left to room. Just like I had found an answer to keep her engaged, she had found a method for not giving up. So, once the time for lessons had passed, I told her about my adventures until the sound of her stomach growling filled the room.

  “Aren't you hungry?”

  “Yes! Keep going!”

  “I can talk while we go to the dinning hall.”

  “Okay!”

  I barely survived the first month. I was certain the next few years as her teacher would be difficult for the both of us, but it would help us both grow as well.